TARMAC N TORQUE
The archive

News & Features

Everything we've published, from track-side reporting to slow Sunday reads.

Rockford Fosgate Adds Three Factory-Fit Audio Kits for Polaris RZR and Sportsman
Aftermarket

Rockford Fosgate Adds Three Factory-Fit Audio Kits for Polaris RZR and Sportsman

The Tempe, Arizona audio maker rolled out a rear-door speaker upgrade, a boosted subwoofer kit, and a new front-rack system built for Polaris off-road vehicles.

Mitch HAugust 6, 20264 min read
Michelin Launches XHA3 Radial Tire for Loaders, Dump Trucks and Graders
Aftermarket

Michelin Launches XHA3 Radial Tire for Loaders, Dump Trucks and Graders

The new construction-equipment tire adds a sensor-free visual inflation indicator and claims up to 20% longer wear life than its predecessor, with U.S. availability beginning this year.

Mitch HAugust 6, 20264 min read
AWE Tuning Launches New Exhaust Suite for the BMW G42 M240i
Aftermarket

AWE Tuning Launches New Exhaust Suite for the BMW G42 M240i

The Pennsylvania-based exhaust maker says its straight-through 3-inch system frees up 65 percent more flow than stock, with Touring and Track editions built around the B58 inline-six.

Mitch HAugust 6, 20264 min read
American Force Adds Seven New Forged Wheel Designs to Its Lineup
Aftermarket

American Force Adds Seven New Forged Wheel Designs to Its Lineup

The Wheel Pros-owned truck wheel brand expanded its monoblock forged catalog with seven new styles spanning sport truck, dually, and big-and-tall applications.

Mitch HAugust 6, 20264 min read
The Aero Shop That Wind-Tunnel-Tests Wings for Cars That Never Leave the Track
Aftermarket

The Aero Shop That Wind-Tunnel-Tests Wings for Cars That Never Leave the Track

Voltex has spent 25 years building the GT wings and splitters that define Japanese time attack — parts developed for one job only: shaving tenths off a lap at Tsukuba.

Mitch HJuly 17, 20264 min read
The Brand That Turned Luxury Sedans Into Rolling Living Rooms
Aftermarket

The Brand That Turned Luxury Sedans Into Rolling Living Rooms

Junction Produce didn't set out to build an industry — it made bodykits for its own crew in the early '90s until strangers at car shows started asking to buy them. Now it's the name most associated with Japan's VIP style.

Mitch HJuly 17, 20264 min read
The Bodykit Brand That Defined an Entire Generation of Toyota Sedans
Aftermarket

The Bodykit Brand That Defined an Entire Generation of Toyota Sedans

Vertex never touched a Supra or an RX-7. Its whole reputation was built on the Toyota Chaser and Mark II — the sedans that carried Japan's VIP and drift scenes at the same time.

Mitch HJuly 17, 20264 min read
The GT-R Tuner That Never Bothered Chasing Big Horsepower Numbers
Aftermarket

The GT-R Tuner That Never Bothered Chasing Big Horsepower Numbers

Mine's has been quietly refining Nissan's Skyline and GT-R since 1985, and its founder's whole philosophy comes down to one idea: balance beats a bigger number on the dyno sheet.

Mitch HJuly 17, 20264 min read
Bomex Made the Bumper on the Most Famous Movie Supra Ever. It Never Actually Went Away.
Aftermarket

Bomex Made the Bumper on the Most Famous Movie Supra Ever. It Never Actually Went Away.

Alligator Co. built Bomex into one of the defining names in JDM aero through the '90s, from a Tokyo Auto Salon award to Brian O'Connor's Supra. Nearly 35 years later, Bomex Aero is drawing a new generation on Instagram.

Mitch HJuly 17, 20264 min read
One Chiba Shop Has Tuned Nothing But Rotary Engines Since 1974
Aftermarket

One Chiba Shop Has Tuned Nothing But Rotary Engines Since 1974

RE Amemiya's name isn't a brand exercise — 'RE' stands for Rotary Engine, and founder Isami Amemiya has spent over five decades building his entire business around a powerplant most tuners consider too finicky to specialize in.

Mitch HJuly 16, 20265 min read
StreetHunter Designs Went From a YouTuber's Garage to a Widebody Catalog Spanning Six Platforms
Aftermarket

StreetHunter Designs Went From a YouTuber's Garage to a Widebody Catalog Spanning Six Platforms

TJ Hunt didn't set out to run a body kit company — he just kept installing other people's kits and thinking he could do it better.

Mitch HJuly 14, 20265 min read
A 21-Year-Old Turned an Architecture Background Into His Own Toyota 86 Aero Brand
Aftermarket

A 21-Year-Old Turned an Architecture Background Into His Own Toyota 86 Aero Brand

Elfaera's Yuri isn't the first person to make his own body kit for the 86/BRZ platform — he's part of a small but growing line of builders using the car as a design portfolio.

Mitch HJuly 14, 20264 min read
Roush's New Supercharger Puts 810 Legal Horsepower Under a Stock-Looking Mustang Hood
Aftermarket

Roush's New Supercharger Puts 810 Legal Horsepower Under a Stock-Looking Mustang Hood

The 2026 Roush Mustang Supercharger bolts in with zero cutting or drilling, and it's now 50-state legal.

Mitch HJuly 9, 20264 min read
HRE Marks 20 Years of Monoblok Wheels With an All-New Structural Design
Aftermarket

HRE Marks 20 Years of Monoblok Wheels With an All-New Structural Design

The Series P3 debuts with the P301 — a five-spoke mesh wheel built around an integrated structural disc, fit for cars like the Porsche GT3 RS and Ferrari F80.

Mitch HJuly 8, 20263 min read
3D Printers Are Turning Garages Into Body Kit Shops — and Bugatti's Taking Notes
Aftermarket

3D Printers Are Turning Garages Into Body Kit Shops — and Bugatti's Taking Notes

From a widebody Miata kit designed in Fusion 360 and printed on a desktop machine to Bugatti's titanium brake calipers, additive manufacturing is reshaping what "aftermarket" means.

Mitch HJuly 7, 20265 min read
How a Vietnam-Era Helicopter Fix Became a Multibillion-Dollar Car Care Industry
Aftermarket

How a Vietnam-Era Helicopter Fix Became a Multibillion-Dollar Car Care Industry

Paint protection film started as 3M's answer to rotor-blade damage in the 1960s. Now it's a self-healing, publicly-traded business anchoring modern car care.

Mitch HJuly 7, 20265 min read
Bridgestone's New Track Slick Claims a Faster Lap With a New 'Sprint' Tire Option
Aftermarket

Bridgestone's New Track Slick Claims a Faster Lap With a New 'Sprint' Tire Option

The Racing Battlax V03 lands in Europe and North America in 2026, with a Sprint-spec rear tire built specifically for qualifying-length runs.

Mitch HJuly 6, 20263 min read
A New Mid-Mount Turbo Kit Targets 600+ WHP on the 370Z and G37
Aftermarket

A New Mid-Mount Turbo Kit Targets 600+ WHP on the 370Z and G37

Bull Boost Performance's patent-pending kit is built specifically for manual-transmission VQ37VHR cars.

Mitch HJune 1, 20263 min read
Roush's 810-HP Mustang Supercharger Kit Is Now 50-State Legal
Aftermarket

Roush's 810-HP Mustang Supercharger Kit Is Now 50-State Legal

The S650 GT and Dark Horse kit clears every state's emissions rules — a real hurdle for any bolt-on this size to clear.

Mitch HJune 1, 20263 min read
EV Widebody Kits Are Now the Fastest-Growing Corner of the Bodykit Market
Aftermarket

EV Widebody Kits Are Now the Fastest-Growing Corner of the Bodykit Market

Larte Design's kit for the Tesla Model S and Avante Design's kit for the Porsche Taycan are leading a segment nobody expected five years ago.

Mitch HApril 28, 20264 min read
Brembo's 'Beyond EV' Kit Is Built Specifically for How Electric Cars Actually Brake
Aftermarket

Brembo's 'Beyond EV' Kit Is Built Specifically for How Electric Cars Actually Brake

A coated-disc and matched-pad system engineered around regenerative braking behavior, aimed at the fast-growing EV and hybrid aftermarket.

Mitch HMarch 10, 20263 min read
Ford Will Now Pre-Install a Whipple Supercharger on Your F-150 or Mustang
Aftermarket

Ford Will Now Pre-Install a Whipple Supercharger on Your F-150 or Mustang

Ford Racing Parts is offering the kit as a dealer-installed, pre-delivery option — pushing the Mustang GT and Dark Horse as high as 810 horsepower.

Mitch HMarch 3, 20264 min read
Volk Racing's TE37 GRAVEL III Brings a Rally Icon Into Its Third Generation
Aftermarket

Volk Racing's TE37 GRAVEL III Brings a Rally Icon Into Its Third Generation

RAYS Engineering's gravel-spec version of the legendary TE37 gets an update — one of the most recognizable wheel designs in rally and Group A history.

Mitch HFebruary 19, 20263 min read
BBS Unveiled Three New Wheels at Tokyo Auto Salon — Including a Street-Legal E88 Homage
Aftermarket

BBS Unveiled Three New Wheels at Tokyo Auto Salon — Including a Street-Legal E88 Homage

The MAG-R, FL FORTEGA, and RT88 cover a magnesium wheel built for the BMW M3, an EV-focused alloy, and a road-going version of BBS's motorsport-only E88.

Mitch HJanuary 28, 20264 min read
Rocket Bunny's New 'Pocket Bunny' Kit Turns a Kei Car Into a Miniature R32 GT-R
Aftermarket

Rocket Bunny's New 'Pocket Bunny' Kit Turns a Kei Car Into a Miniature R32 GT-R

TRA Kyoto's latest widebody conversion doesn't just widen a car — it turns a Suzuki Twin kei car into a shrunk-down Skyline GT-R, debuted at Tokyo Auto Salon 2026.

Mitch HJanuary 15, 20264 min read
Mickey Thompson Just Revived Its Classic Wheel as a Modern Forged Monoblock
Aftermarket

Mickey Thompson Just Revived Its Classic Wheel as a Modern Forged Monoblock

The MT Classic Forged blends the original wheel's vintage look with 6061-T6 forged construction, arriving at retailers in early 2026.

Mitch HJanuary 1, 20263 min read
Wilwood Built a Big Brake Kit for the Van-Life Crowd's Overloaded Sprinters
Aftermarket

Wilwood Built a Big Brake Kit for the Van-Life Crowd's Overloaded Sprinters

The AERO-DM direct-mount kit targets 2022-2024 Sprinter 2500 AWD conversions that routinely exceed factory GVWR once cabinetry and gear go in.

Mitch HFebruary 25, 20253 min read
Work Wheels Revives the Cult-Favorite VS KF as the New VS KF♯
Aftermarket

Work Wheels Revives the Cult-Favorite VS KF as the New VS KF♯

Eight years after being discontinued, Work's 3-piece VS KF returns with updated load ratings, more finish options, and a limited Chrome Edition.

Mitch HJanuary 10, 20253 min read
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